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A while ago I had two patients where scars left from operations affected muscle function.

The first patient came in complaining of acute low back pain that happened on lifting a box that was too heavy for her; one of the muscles I tested is the Rectus Abdominal, it was weak in the clear. The Rectus Abdominal (RA) is part of the support for the Lumbar (low back);she had mentioned that she had had a tummy tuck years ago.
When she touched the scar (therapy localize) which was above her pubes (RA tries into the pubes) her RA tested strong so I massaged the scar and the RA now tested strong.

I find that the T10-T11 vertabrae which are part of the innervation of the RA were subluxated and adjusted them. I also adjusted subluxations in the low back.

I showed her which abdominal exercise I wanted her to do after a daily massage of the scar.

The second patient come in w/ thoracic weakness; she have a history of different cancers.
When I tested her Pectoralis muscles, both parts (Clavicular & Sternal) tested weak. She said that she was not surprised as a “good part of the muscle was removed” where they removed her breast. I therapy localized the scar from the breast removal and retested as I touched the scar…both parts of the muscle now tested strong.
I massaged the scar… and the muscle tested strong. I found subluxations at C5 for innervation of the clavicular section and C7 for the sternal section and adjusted them both.
Patient’s homework was to massage that scar before doing exercises for the pectorlis.

Please click on below research articles on relation of scars to muscle pain and function.

“Whiplash” is commonly associated with auto accidents but also can be associated with many types of trauma like sport injuries, bad falls and even nodding off in chair and awaking with a sudden jerking of the neck.

The term “whiplash” refers to the mechanism of the injury. The proper terminology is cervical hyperextension/hyperflexion sprain. Hyperextension means that the head and neck are bent backward beyond their normal range of movement. Hyperflexion means that the head and neck are bent forward beyond the normal range of motion. Symptoms can include neck and back pain, loss of range of motion, shoulder & arm pain or numbness, jaw pain, dizziness, headaches, nausea, difficulty swallowing etc.

Cranial-Sacral Mechanism: the skull and sacrum operate in ways that are often inadequately considered in whiplash cases. There is movement between the cranial bones and the sacrum called the cranial sacral respiratory mechanism that pumps cerebrospinal fluid https://drvittoriarepetto.wordpress.com/2010/05/17/cranial-sacral-therapy-in-applied-kinesiology/ up and down the spine that helps keep the nerves healthy. Whiplash can cause jamming of the cranial bones resulting in poor function. Poor function of this mechanism can interfere with cranial nerves, some of which control neck muscles, muscles that move the eyes, and muscles that move the jaw, muscles involved with swallowing and breathing.

Some of the very bizarre symptoms of whiplash trauma develop as a result of cranial dysfunction. Intricately associated with this area are the nerves responsible for balance. These include cranial nerve VIII, which supplies the balance mechanism of the middle ear, cranial nerves III, IV, and VI that supply the muscles that move the eyes and are intricately associated with the visual righting reflexes, and the nerve endings in the upper cervical vertebral ligaments that supply the head on-neck reflexes. These reflexes must work together. If there has been injury causing improper nerve supply to one or more of these areas, neurologic disorganization develops that can cause a change in muscle function throughout the body; there may be dizziness, ear ringing, nausea, blurred or double vision, headaches, and myriad other symptoms.

The movement of the sacrum, commonly missed in a non-applied kinesiology office, is checked for dysfunction and adjusted for return of normal function and proper flow of the cerebrospinal fluid so important to the health of the brain and the spinal cord and nerves.

In the chiropractic examination which includes orthopedic, neurological and spinal palpation, the addition of applied kinesiology and muscle testing adds an extra dimension of revealing the patient’s health status.

In the 1960’s, Dr George Goodheart found that muscle testing could be used in the evaluation of normal and abnormal body function. His examination soon included evaluation of the vascular and lymphatic system, nutrition, acupoint therapy, cranial movement and other factors that control health. He called this system based on the application of muscle testing: applied kinesiology.

Muscle testing is the first part of the applied kinesiological examination; muscles are tested in a specific manner in different areas of the body. When a weakness is found, the question that the chiropractic/AK doctor has to answer is why the weakness is there.

Is the weakness due to a spinal/nerve problem, a vascular problem, a problem with lymphatic function, a nutritional default, a problem with organ function or an acupoint associated w/ that muscle? What treatment is needed to correct the problem and improve the patient’s health?

In the process of answering the question, the patient will either place their finger or hand on specific points or areas and the doctor retests the muscle to see if the weakness is corrected. This is called therapy localization.

If the therapy localization is positive and the area involved is the spine or a joint or a cranial fault,, the doctor will move the area in a way to stimulate neuro/mechano receptors in the joint or spine. This is called a “challenge’ and shows the direction of manipulation needed to improve function of the joint/spine and/or cranial movement.

Therapy localization is also used to evaluate if there is a problem w/ the vascular and lymphatic that supply the organs of the body or the meridian/acupoint system that are related to certain organ and muscle function.

In addition to the information from blood tests and examination of hair, eyes, skin, etc, an applied kinesiologist can use muscle testinng to “challenge” the supplements needed or the possibility of food allergies or intolerances that are affecting the patient’s health.

Therefore the addition of applied kinesiology combined with usual examination helps find what the problem is and how to correct it. The correction immediately improves muscle function and decreases the pain or the problem that the patient first came in with to the doctor.

On future visits, the above examination reveals if the corrections held and if the patient’s health is improving.

When health is restored , an applied kinesiologist uses these methods to maintain health and correct problems before they develop.

The joints are flexible, allowing the jaw to move smoothly up and down and side to side and enabling you to talk, chew, and yawn. Muscles attached to and surrounding the jaw joint control the position and movement of the jaw.

Grinding or clenching the teeth, which puts a lot of pressure on the TMJ

Dislocation of the soft cushion or disc between the ball and socket

Presence of osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis in the TMJ

Stress or Emotional Overload which can cause a person to tighten facial and jaw muscles or clench the teeth

Biting down on a hard and/or thick piece of food

Using jaw clenching to compensate for weak or inhibited muscles elsewhere

What Are the Symptoms of a TMJ Problem?

Pain or tenderness in the face, jaw joint area, neck and shoulders, and in or around the ear when you chew, speak, or open your mouth wide

Limited ability to open the mouth very wide

Jaws that get “stuck” or “lock” in the open- or closed-mouth position

Clicking, popping, or grating sounds in the jaw joint when opening or closing the mouth or chewing

Difficulty chewing or a sudden uncomfortable bite

Swelling on the side of the face

May occur on one or both sides of the face

Other common symptoms of a TMJ problem can include digestive problems, toothaches, headaches, neck aches, dizziness, earaches, hearing problems, upper shoulder pain, and ringing in the ears (tinnitis).

As a Applied Kinesiologist and Doctor Of Chiropractic, I look at the articulation of the joint itself and the pull of the muscles such as the Masseter, the Temporalis, the External Pterygoid and the Internal Pterygoid on the joint itself. Neck muscles, hyoid muscles and upper back muscles also affect the TMJ. Are they in spasm? Are they weak? Do they need muscle spindle or golgi tendon work?

Subluxations of the occipital also are involved with upper cervical (neck) problems and therefore cervical subluxations are adjusted

And since the examining acupuncture pts. on the head shows us that a number of meridians associated with digestion such as the stomach, small intestine and large intestines cross the TMJ can affect digestion (digestion can affect the TMJ), checking acupunture pts., the neuro-lymphatic and neuro-vascular points for digestive organs need to checked to see if there is any connection.

Once all the above are checked, then a very gentle adjustment of the joint itself can done.; a number of adjustments may be needed to break the subluxated pattern and get the Jaw joint moving freely and pain and noise free.

If you believe you have a TMJ problem, please give my office at call at 212-431-3724 for an appointment.

If you have been following my blogs, you know that as a Doctor of Chiropractic and an Applied Kinesiologist I am interested in nutrition. In this blog, I am recommending that at least half of your calcium intake (daily intake – 900mg- 1200 mg) come from the food that you eat. Please see below for a listing of calcium in common foods.

There are reasons for this: one is that fresh unprocessed foods contain other minerals besides calcium like magnesium, potassium and boron that help form the collagen matrix lattice in your bones that the calcium attachs itself to.

These fresh foods like green leafy vegetables and yogurt contain Vitamin K; one of the functions of this vitamin is to keep calcium out of your joints and arteries. Other food like dairy products, eggs, fish contain Vitamin D which helps the calcium attach to the bone.

In another blog, I talked about being careful about what kind of calcium is in your supplements as some calcium supplements can prevent absorption of calcium, weaken your bones and create other health problems.

One of the protocols I perform when I have a new patient is I look at the labels of the multiple vitamin and calcium supplements they are taking as their daily routine.

In this blog, I’ll be talking about two minerals that may be critical to your health.

One of the most common problems is the use of Calcium Carbonate in the supplement they are taking. Calcium Carbonate is an antacid which a lot of vitamin companies use because it is cheap.

The problem is that you need acid in your stomach in order to digest your food and absorb vitamins and mineral from both your diet and your supplements. Taking Calcium Carbonate stops that digestive process.

Decreasing (or completely getting rid of) the acid in your stomach means that you can’t digest and absorb not only Calcium but protein, iron, Vitamin B12 and zinc.

So basically you are setting yourself up for osteoporosis, fatigue, muscle wasting, iron anemia, memory problems and poor wound healing to mention a few.

And because of the lack of acid, you may feel like you have heartburn and think that you have too acid and take more antacids; further compounding the problem.

The other major mineral in patient’s supplements that I’ll be talking about is iron.

Unless you are a menstruating women w a heavy flow or an extreme athlete or on an extreme starvation diet, iron supplementation may not be necessary.

Iron is present in animal protein and beans, legumes and some leafy green vegetables. And a lot of packaged foods like cereal and dairy and nut milk products have added iron.

Too much iron can accumulate in organs like the brain, the pancreas, gonads, pituitary, liver, the joints and heart and cause problems like toxic liver, arthritis, dementia, etc

Lab tests for excess iron include serum ferritin level and transferrin saturation; regular anemia testing will not show the problem.

A great way to keep your iron levels from getting too high from added iron in your food is to donate blood (and great karma).

There are vitamin companies that make multi-vitamin minerals that do not have added iron; one company that I recommend and use is Metagenics. (http://www.metagenics.com )